What is the Difference Between Wheel Alignment and Wheel Balancing?
2 Answers
Here are the differences between wheel alignment and wheel balancing: Different Functions: Wheel alignment involves inspecting and adjusting the vehicle's driving trajectory, including adjustments to the suspension, chassis, and other components; wheel balancing simply evens out the mass distribution of the wheel to make it rotate more smoothly. Different Responsibilities: Wheel alignment adjusts the data for all four wheels; wheel balancing involves adding counterweights to each wheel. Different Definitions: Front wheel alignment includes four aspects: caster angle, kingpin inclination angle, camber angle, and toe-in. Rear wheel alignment includes camber angle and individual rear wheel toe-in. Collectively, front and rear wheel alignment is referred to as wheel alignment, commonly known as four-wheel alignment. Wheel balancing refers to the balance between wheels during vehicle operation. Balancing weights are added because the mass distribution of each tire cannot be perfectly uniform during manufacturing.
To be honest, I was also confused about these two things when I first started driving. Wheel alignment mainly adjusts the angles of the chassis suspension, such as toe-in and camber, to prevent the car from pulling to one side or uneven tire wear. Like last time when I replaced the shock absorbers but didn’t do the alignment, the steering wheel was as crooked as if it were drunk. Wheel balancing is a completely different matter—it involves taking the wheel off and spinning it on a machine to find the unbalanced spots, then attaching lead weights to fix it. This solves the problem of steering wheel vibration at high speeds. For example, when my speed went over 80, my hands would go numb, which was due to unbalanced wheels. Alignment involves adjusting the suspension, which is more complex, while balancing only deals with the wheel itself, making it much simpler. If your car pulls to one side, check the alignment; if it vibrates, inspect the balancing. Don’t mix them up and waste money on unnecessary repairs.
